The Foulbunt Top Ten - No. 9

In collating the Top Ten cards in my collection, I noticed that a common theme existed, the Hall of Fame rookie card.  Of course, most players' rookie cards tend to be their most sought after, but also the Hall of Famers themselves tend to be more valuable as well.  Of course, not all rookie cards are from a player's first year, but it is their first official card.  When you pair a rookie card with a baseball legend, well, you end up with something really special.  That brings us to card number 9 in my Top Ten:

This is a 1933 Goudey Jimmie Foxx that I got in a deal on Instagram a while back.  The card is graded by SGC and is "Poor".  You can see that based on the severely rounded corners and the huge crease in the top right corner.  All grading issues aside, this is a Jimmie Foxx rookie card.  Let that sink in a bit.  Foxx is one of my PCs and one of my all-time favorite Hall of Famers.

The deal itself worried me some, since it seemed so too good to be true.  I got the card for $40 from a guy on Instagram that I hadn't dealt with before.  It turned out that I shouldn't have prejudged so easily, because he was 100% legit and sent the card really fast.  I haven't done any deals with him since then, but this had to have been one of my best deals on there.

June 2015 Raleigh Card Show - Day 1 Recap

I am wore out from a long day of selling stuff at the card show.  For a two-day show, I have already broken even, and still have tomorrow to go.  I was able to add to my inventory tonight when I busted my three jumbo boxes of Series 2 Topps, but those hits will come at a later time (the ones that don't sell, at least).

I was really happy with the turnout today, and I hope I can sell a few more things tomorrow.  I didn't take much money with me to spend, but I was still able to get a few deals.  The theme of today's show seemed to be "well loved vintage."

I didn't have a whole lot of time to browse, but I did stop by the Huggins Auction booth where he had some vintage cards for 50% off of his sticker price.  He had a bunch of Hall of Famers, so I figured I would take the opportunity to add to my collection, a few cards that I wouldn't be able to afford otherwise.

The above '52 Bowman Yogi Berra has a really nice front.  Pretty worn, and all, but it looks really nice.

The back, on the other hand, is rough.  The card would probably grade at less than a 1, but it is still a cool card.  I guess you could say that I have a soft spot for the "well loved" cards, and this one fits right in there. I paid $14 for the card, so I think I still did really well.

The next card I grabbed is actually a PC need.  This is a 1953 Bowman Color Bob Feller.  The front is kind of rough, as you can see many creases.

The back is blown all to crap, though.  It looks like the card was taped into an album.  I bet it was a kid from back in the 50's who was really proud showing off his collection.  I can use this card to fill a spot in my PC until I can find an upgrade.  I gor this one for $12.00.

The best of the three Hall of Famers, I got this Arky Vaughan for $24.00.  It is a 1933 Goudey, and the front is in really good shape.

The back has a little paper loss on the bottom right corner, as you can see.  It is still my first card of Vaughan, and I am glad I picked it up.

This 1976 All Star ballot was a really cool find.  That's exactly what it was, too, a find.  As my wife and I were walking out of the show for the evening, I saw this lying on the ground.  No one was around, and there was no way to tell whose it was, so it went home with me.  Check out all of the Hall of Famers on the ballot (you can click on it to enlarge, Mom).

Finally, I was able to pick up 5 high number cards for my 1959 Topps set for $3/each.  The above Stengel is probably the highlight of the bunch.

Anyway, I am really tired, so I am going to close this entry.  I would like it if any NC/SC/VA collectors were able to come by the show and say hello.  That would be really cool.  I will have some new 2015 Topps hits and inserts available in the morning.

More From Michael - Lots of Relics and Autos

I wrote the other day (here) about my close friend, Michael, and how he hooked me up in our latest deal.  Actually, this post will consist of cards from our TWO most recent deals, because I needed to get them up quickly before our NEXT deal comes in!

Michael really hooked me up with a ton of relics, autos and a sprinkling of vintage here and there.  I think it might have been reward for my getting him back into cards, or one might also think it was as a reward for the amazing friendship that I provide.  Ok, I'm being facetious, it WAS because I got him back into cards.  He normally specializes in game used memorabilia, but he has expanded his collection into cards recently.  Cards like the above Jesse Hahn are what usually catch his eye, but he also likes to flip them, if necessary.  I made him a great deal with some autographed memorabilia from Fan Fest in exchange for these and the Chris Davis laundry tag card from the previous post that I mentioned.

The Hahn is a really awesome card.  I think I'm going to hold onto it for a while.  A lot of the autos/relics that he included were intended to help me repopulate my trade bait section, but this card will be off limits for the time being.  It's just too cool.

From the trade prior to the laundry tag deal, came this 1962 Topps Billy Pierce.  Michael knows that I enjoy my vintage and offered up this Pierce, along with a couple other vintage cards at a really good price.  I went ahead with the deal, since I knew he was saving money for Fan Fest.  This deal was really facilitated because I was wanting to help out my friend.

I already had three of the 2009 Bowman Sterling Nolan Reimold cards, but I got this one off of Michael in order to complete a months-old deal with his little brother Jacob.  I sent Jacob a few Orioles relics/autos in return for this card.  Also, in return for my deal, I got a phone call from Jacob himself, which was really welcome.  Like Michael, he is a really good kid.

As throw-ins to our mega trade, Michael gave me two of these 2011 Bowman Sterling Mychal Givens autos.  Givens is still in the Orioles farm system, having been transitioned from infielder to pitcher.  He should start the season at AA Bowie, and could be a sleeper to make the major league team in the bullpen this summer.

I do intend on using some of the autos Michael sent me as trade bait.  He included quite a few Bowman Sterling autos like this Andrew Church.  I already have agreed to part with a Phil Ervin auto and once I post the other cards, they are sure to land me some deals as well.

I also got some of Michael's 2014 Bowman Sterling base cards.  These cards look really awesome! This Michael Choice is already earmarked to go to my buddy, Max, but some of the other base will likely be traded to other folks.

Mo Vaughn hasn't made much of an appearance on this blog, but in his day, I liked him pretty well.  A massive human being, Vaughn had a respectable career, which was capped with an MVP award.  This on card auto is really nice and I plan on holding onto it for a while.

I like Sonny Gray.  Michael knows this.  He sweetend our deal by adding this Gray booklet so he could get a few more Orioles autos off of me... even though he knows that he was getting them from me any way.  Speaking of Gray, I don't know if I offically PC him yet, but I do have a couple autos of his coming in.  I just think he is a really good pitcher, and I intend to follow his career closely.  Who knows, maybe Billy Beane will trade him to the Orioles at some point.

Speaking of Orioles, Michael hooked me up with this awesome Frank Robinson 12/27 Triple Threads triple relic card.  Why 27?  Hell, I don't know, but it is a really nice card.

Finally, this might be the most underrated piece in the deal.  This is a bat relic from Hall of Famer, Dave Bancroft numbered 43/99.  While looking at Bancroft's stats, it appears that he was one of the many HOFers who benefited from lax Veterans Committee voting, but a Hall of Famer is still a Hall of Famer.  I had nothing of Bancroft in my collection, so adding this card was a must.

So, thank you so much for the many deals that we have done in the several years of our friendship, Michael!  A person that I met strictly through the blog has grown to be one of my closest friends and I can't be more appreciative.  He is one of the reasons why I love this card community.

If you guys haven't checked out his blog, please do.  You can find it here.

Instagram Pickup - 1933 Goudey Jimmie Foxx RC

This card wasn't even on my Top 10 wishlist.  It wasn't on there because I thought it was so far out of reach at the moment, I would concentrate on more realistic goals.  Well, sometimes things just fall into your lap.

I was tagged on a photo on Instagram recently when someone asked what everyone thought the value of this card would be.  Someone commented that I might have an idea.  I gave the guy an honest answer, that it was probably worth around $100 in this condition based on recent Ebay sales. The guy had said he had it listed on Ebay for $40 and thought he had overpriced it.  I commented right away that if he wanted to sell it for $40, then I would be all over it.  Long story short, the card is now in my hands and I can thank Joe D. from Instagram for hooking me up with an amazing card for my Foxx PC.

I've never been a fan of graded cards at all, but this card, you'd have to buy it graded to be sure that it was legit.  I don't even care that the card is graded at a 1.  I'm just happy to own a Jimmie Foxx RC. A 1933 Goudey RC.  It's so awesome, I can't take it!

Ebay Pickup - 1933 Goudey Rick Ferrell

I used what was left on my Ebay gift card to pick up this 1933 Goudey Rick Ferrell. This is the first Goudey card that I have picked up, so I wanted to make it a Hall of Famer.
Rick Ferrell (b. 1905 - d. 1995) played in the majors from 1929 to 1945 and 1947 for the Browns, Red Sox and Senators. He had 1,692 hits, 28 home runs and a .281 batting average. He was an All Star 7 times. I'm still a little baffled as to why he is a Hall of Famer, having been elected via the Veterans Committee in 1984. I'm assuming it is because during his era, the catching position wasn't known for much offense? Maybe someone can shed some light on that for me.

Ferrell is a native North Carolinian; he was born in Durham and grew up outside of Greensboro in Guilford County.

After doing a little more research on the card, I found out that this is, in fact, Ferrell's rookie card. So, it appears that with a $25 Ebay gift card, I was able to knock out two Hall of Fame rookie cards. A former Oriole and St. Louis Brown. Not too bad.